There is lost. And there is middle of the ocean, Tom Hanks talking to a volleyball lost.

"I was so lost," said Broncos rookie defensive lineman Malik Jackson. "They handed me that playbook when we first got here and I was just lost, to the point where I thought maybe I should consider another way to make a living."

Jackson, a fifth-round draft pick, laughed when he said the thought of another line of work had crossed his mind. But he got down to business enough to join the rest of the Broncos' 2012 draft class on the 53-player roster as the team awaits the season opener Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Jackson and the other rookies represent what John Elway, the Broncos' executive vice president of football operations, has talked about since his first day on the job in January 2011. Elway wants to stack quality draft classes on top of each other to get the Broncos back to the Super Bowl.

All seven of the team's draft picks this year made the 53-man roster. Two undrafted rookies, long snapper Aaron Brewer and linebacker Steven Johnson, also survived the cuts.

Thirteen of the Broncos' last 16 draft picks — covering the last two drafts — are on the 53-man roster. Also, Jeremy Beal, who many inside Broncos headquarters said was going to make this year's team, is on injured reserve and tight end Virgil Green is on reserve/suspended for four games.

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The only Denver player drafted the last two years who has been released is middle linebacker Mike Mohamed, who likely had his backup job taken by Johnson.

"That's how we have to build, as we've talked about. Build within and do a good job in the draft to create the depth that we need," Elway said. "The draft class from last year and even this year are still intact. (The) coaches have done a good job of coaching and teaching them to make them better players. ... Our job is to make them good football players."

That coaching and teaching can be seen in Jackson, who played defensive end for two seasons at Southern California then defensive tackle for two seasons at Tennessee.

In the Denver defensive system of coordinator Jack Del Rio, Jackson has been impressive. Several scouts who saw him in preseason games said their teams would have been interested in Jackson had the Broncos cut him. The reason: He made plays in game situations wherever the Broncos lined him up.

"I just tried to be consistent, tried to be responsible," Jackson said. "I know I'm going to make mistakes, but you try to minimize them. Don't make the same ones twice. I always want to show them I can play football. But they have to trust you to put you in there, and you get that trust by doing what you're supposed to in practice."

Del Rio likes hard-charging players with a physical edge at left end — the power end position in a 4-3 defense. That player battles the right tackle and the tight end in most offensive formations. It's why rookie Derek Wolfe quickly moved into the starting lineup there and why Jackson is his backup.

Jackson, like Wolfe, can move inside to tackle in some of the Broncos' specialty packages on defense. Wolfe, Jackson and Beal tied for the team lead in preseason sacks with two apiece.

"They said they were going to put me at end and I believed them," Jackson said. "When you get your opportunities, you've just got to go with what they said. ... I'll do what's necessary wherever they put me. They throw a lot at you to see how you handle it. Are you going to study? Are you going to get frustrated? Are you going to find your way? I think I tried to do all that to find my way."